


This is How I Bop to the Top

by metzalia14



Category: High School Musical (Movies), My Chemical Romance
Genre: Alternate Universe - I'm Not Okay Video, Chyan - Freeform, Crossover, Fluff, Frerard, High School Musical - Freeform, M/M, Mild Angst, also there is a dog named Dorf, and poor frank is unaware of bisexuality, blood music video, chad is an mcr fanboy, its only in one chapter I promise, my chemical romance - Freeform, three cheers for sweet revenge era, youre welcome
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-30
Updated: 2017-07-30
Packaged: 2018-12-08 16:50:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 16,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11650731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/metzalia14/pseuds/metzalia14
Summary: Ryan studies them a bit closer.  The boys look out of place and uncomfortable sitting alone at their lunch table, visibly hunched over and chatting minimally.  Ryan kind of wanted to introduce himself to them, show them around, because he really didn’t like it when people were sad and rather enjoyed cheering them up.  “I’m going to go talk to them,” Ryan says on a whim.“Wait! Ryan, are you sure that’s a good idea?”(Chad and Ryan become friends with the new emo kids who were kicked out of St. Helena.  Centered around Chad/Ryan and Frank/Gerard noticing the other pair's crushes on one another and constantly trying to get each other together. Inspiration from the original HSM movie and I'm Not Okay & Blood music videos).





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Ok so this fic started off as a stupid idea that was originally going to be written as a bit of a joke because who writes mcr/hsm crossovers? But as I started writing I came up with more and more ideas, making it quite believable and I got pretty serious about it. So, here it is. Enjoy!

“Like this?” Chad asks as he attempts to do the jazz square Ryan had just demonstrated.  Ryan chuckles under his breath.  He doesn’t want his crush to hate him for laughing at his rather adorable attempt at theatrical dancing.  He knows Chad can dance; he’s seen him before, jamming in the locker room with hip hop blasting through his headphones.  Ryan just needs to find a way to apply hip hop to theatre, is all.  Which reminds him.  Maybe this would work out better if he had a visual to show Chad other than his own mediocre dancing. 

“Have you ever seen Hamilton?” Ryan asks.  He knows Chad hasn’t.  Sure enough, the boy shakes his head.

“No, but I’ve heard of it and ever since I’ve been talking to you I’ve been meaning to-“

“Perfect!” Ryan interrupts.  “Are you doing anything tonight?  I have the DVD of the live performance.  I think you could learn a lot from it, and you can come over and watch it with me.  If you want to, of course.”  Ryan hopes he’s not being too obvious, but he thinks his confidence and positivity get a good reaction out of Chad anyway because his face lights up. 

“Of course! I mean, you’ll have to wait until I get done with basketball practice, but other than that, I would love to!” 

A second later, they both hear footsteps coming into the theater.  Chad swears under his breath as they both quickly make their way backstage.  They both crouch down and watch as Ms. Darbus comes marching down the aisle.  They can hear her mumbling to herself, something like “if these lights are left on one more time” and turns off the switch near the stage.  The area around them goes black, and Ryan can barely see.  The only thing he becomes aware of is Chad’s quiet breathing and his own increasing heart rate.  He lets out a breath of relief as Ms. Darbus exits the theater. 

* * *

“This is amazing!” Chad exclaims as he nods his head to the beat of the song and grabs another handful of popcorn.  Ryan knew he would love it.  They were only 10 minutes into the first act.  The boys were watching Hamilton in Ryan’s home theater; with the room pitch black and a giant HD screen in front of them, it was the best experience Chad could have without actually going to Broadway.  Ryan sings every song to himself and notices his friend joining in with him as soon as he gets the hang of the each chorus. 

“I am not throwin’ away my SHOT!” They both yell at the end of the song.  Ryan laughs and applauds Chad, who smiles widely back.  Ryan could seriously stare at that smile for hours, or maybe even forever.

What amazed Ryan the most, though, was how fast Chad picked up on the dancing.  During one of the songs that is almost impossible to not want to move to, Chad got up and picked up the dance piece by piece, almost perfecting it by the end of the number.  Ryan just stared and watched (okay, maybe shooting a glance at Chad’s butt a few times), his mouth agape. 

Chad draws in a breath as soon as Hamilton is over. 

“That’s the best musical I’ve ever seen.  Thank you so much for inviting me over.”

“Anytime, Chad,” Ryan says with a smile.  They sit there and make small talk for a few minutes until Chad looks at his phone. 

“Wow, it’s pretty late.  I should get going, basketball in the morning,” he explains. 

“Yah, of course.  I’m glad you enjoyed hanging out!” Ryan says with confidence once again, although he could feel his heart pounding in his chest as they walk out of the theater room and he leads Chad out the front door.

The boys exchange goodbyes and Ryan closes the door, smiling at the thought of seeing Chad again at school on Monday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this obviously doesn't take place in 2006 because Hamilton exists. Just put it into any time frame you want. Also this is a short little chapter to get the story started so keep going!


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The East High kids meet the emos

“Who are they?” Chad asks Ryan on Monday at lunch.  About a month ago, Chad had invited Ryan to eat lunch with him, Troy, Zeke and Jason after Ryan had been complaining to him about Sharpay.  He was flattered when Chad asked, and, frankly, he still was.

Ryan looks over to the people Chad was talking about.  He recognizes them from his previous hour as they were new and had been introduced by the teacher. 

“Oh, they’re new!  Both of them were in my chemistry class.  The one with the long black hair is Gerard and the little guy is Frank.”  Chad seems impressed by Ryan’s name memory.

Ryan studies them a bit closer.  The boys look out of place and uncomfortable sitting alone at their lunch table, visibly hunched over and chatting minimally.  Ryan kind of wanted to introduce himself to them, show them around, because he really didn’t like it when people were sad and rather enjoyed cheering them up.  “I’m going to go talk to them,” Ryan says on a whim. 

“Wait! Ryan, are you sure that’s a good idea?”  Chad says quietly, putting out a hand as if to stop him.  Ryan could tell by his expression that Chad seemed a bit scared of them.  Okay, maybe the boys looked a bit intimidating with their emo appearances (they _were_ wearing all black, Frank had a lot of piercings, and it looked like Gerard was even wearing eyeliner), but Ryan wasn’t shy.  He kind of felt like messing with Chad to get back at him for his prejudice, anyway.

“Yes I do.  And you’re coming with me,” Ryan says as he grabs Chad’s arm and pulls him up.

“Ryan!” Chad complains, but only resists for a second and then huffs as he starts to move forward with him.  Ryan puts on his biggest smile as they approach Frank and Gerard’s table. 

“Hi guys!  You’re new here, correct?”  Ryan says as nicely as possible when they reach the table.  Both boys’ heads shoot up at the greeting.

“Yeah,” Gerard says with a small smile, his voice higher than Ryan expected.  See, they weren’t so bad already!  He glances over at Chad, who still looks a little uncomfortable and is gripping Ryan’s arm rather tightly.  He smiles to himself.  Frank seems to be owning up a little bit to his stereotype, however, as it is obvious that he’s amused by Ryan’s appearance; his mouth is curled into a small smirk and his eyes are wide with disbelief.  Ryan silently shrugs it off.  He understands that his outfit consisting of a floral pink button-up with white slacks and a shiny yellow fedora isn’t appealing to everyone, but it’s who he is.  Plus, spring was coming up so he obviously had to get in the spirit. 

“My name is Ryan, and this is my friend Chad.  We’re both juniors here.  What brings you two to East High?”  Ryan couldn’t help but be curious as to why the boys had arrived so late in the school year.

Gerard’s smile faltered and he turned to Frank.  The smaller man gave him a small nod.

“Well, we used to go to a private school,” Frank begins, “but, uh…we got kicked out.”

Ryan decides he doesn’t want to push that subject anymore and makes a sympathetic face.  “Oh, I’m so sorry to hear about that!  Well, I can try my best to make you guys feel at home here.  I know I’m in chemistry with you; if you ever need help or advice about the teacher, just ask me!  Also, if you feel like you want to obtain some school spirit, you should go to one of Chad’s basketball games!  The season is starting very soon.”  As he motions to Chad, Ryan can see that he’s calmed down considerably and has a small smile on his face.  “Finally, if you need any advice about the school or ever feel like you just want to get to know a couple of students, come to the theater after school.  We’ll be there to help you out.”  Ryan finishes with a grin.  Frank and Gerard both seem in awe that this student is being so nice to them.

“Thanks!”  Gerard says while flashing a truly genuine smile.

“We will definitely come to you if we need help, thank you so much,” Frank finishes.  Ryan is satisfied with what he has just accomplished so he tells the boys to have a good day before walking back to the lunch table with Chad.

“How did you do that?!”  Chad asks, his eyes wide in amazement.  Ryan’s crush really seems to admire him.  His heart flutters.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ryan can't play basketball for his life and Troy knows what's up.

“Chad, where are you taking me?”  Ryan asks, desperately trying to tear the other boy’s hands off of his eyes.

“Be patient! We’re almost there.”  Ryan hears Chad open up a door and he gently pushes him through.  He can tell the flooring has changed; it makes a slight squeaking noise under his feet.  He thinks he may have already figured this out.

“Chad!”  Ryan yells.  The booming echo confirms his suspicion.  “I know where we are.  We’re in the gym.  There were so many giveaways, Chad.  You should’ve given me earplugs or something.”  Chad tears his hands away, and, just as he thought: he finds himself in the center of the East High gym.

“Ugh!” Chad makes a pouty face and it’s kind of the cutest thing Ryan has ever seen.  “You’re way too good!  I was hoping to surprise you like you did when you took me into the theater for the first time.”  He seems a little angry with himself.

“Hey, it’s okay!  There’s still some of the element of surprise left.  I kind of have no idea why you took me here.” 

* * *

All wrong.  He was doing it all wrong. 

“Ryan, you have to tuck in your elbow more.”  Chad gets behind him again moves his arm back, trying to ignore the sparks he feels every time he touches his crush.  “Okay, try throwing it now.” 

Chad had only just accepted the fact that he liked boys just as much as he liked girls.  Until he became friends with Ryan, he had been 110 percent sure that he was straight.  It had been a rather rough journey of mind battling throughout his junior year to get to the point of acceptance with his sexuality.  He hadn’t even heard of bisexuality until he looked it up one night in a fit of worry and confusion.  He was definitely not, however, ready to come out to anyone; he was one of the most popular jocks at East High.  The only person he had really let his façade down for was, of course, Ryan (sure Troy knew everything about him, but Chad simply felt more comfortable not showing his soft side around his masculine best friend).

Chad stands back and watches the other boy intently.  Ryan’s limbs still make a clumsy flailing motion as he throws the ball -- Chad holds back a giggle because of this -- but it actually ends up hitting the rim this time. 

“Much better!  Keep trying with your arm in that position now.”  It only takes a few more attempted shots before Ryan finally gets a ball in the hoop.  As soon as he realizes what he’s just accomplished, Ryan starts jumping up and down like an excited schoolgirl. 

“Chad, oh my God, I did it!”  Wow, he was the cutest person Chad had ever seen.  He only barely resists giving Ryan a bone-crushing hug and gives him an enthusiastic high-five instead.  Chad smiles at Ryan, who looks absolutely ecstatic.  He can even see it in his eyes; and, now that he’s looking at them, Chad notices specks of _silver_ in his green irises.  Seriously, how can eyes be any prettier when they have fucking metallic colors in them?  He could seriously stare at them forev-

“What are you doing here this early before practice, Chad?”  Troy’s voice actually scares the shit out of him and he sharply turns his head.  “Hey, Ryan.”  Troy smiles and waves at him.  “No offense man, but what are you doing here?”

Before Ryan can stutter out a reply, Chad chimes in, “Ryan was free after school and I needed someone to work on a pair exercise with.  I know Zeke and Jason are taking Johnson’s test and you were doing something with Gabriella, so he was the only choice.  He isn’t half bad at the exercise, either.”  Chad turns his head to smile at Ryan and- is he blushing?  No, there is no way he could be blushing because of Chad.  He mentally shrugs it off. 

Troy seems mostly convinced, although Chad notices him grinning faintly. 

“Yeah, okay,” Troy waves his hand, “I’m gonna go get changed.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The start of a friendship.

“I think we should go see Ryan and Chad after school today,” Gerard says quietly as he looks up from the trig worksheet him and Frank are working on together.  Frank could tell by his face that he had been a bit reluctant to share this information.  He considers the boy’s idea.  He was surprised Gerard actually wanted to make new friends; Frank had thought that he would be enough company at this new school.  Gerard really must be missing Mikey and Ray.  Even though Frank was still a bit reluctant to do so (seriously, that Ryan kid seemed _too_ happy for his liking) he would do anything to make his best friend more comfortable at this new school.  He takes a deep breath.

“Sure,” is all he says, but it’s worth it when Gerard gives him an appreciative smile, nods, and looks back down at their worksheet to move on to the next problem.  That smile did not fade for the rest of class.

* * *

Gerard was having second thoughts about this.  Why was he so nervous?  Ryan seemed so nice, like he wouldn’t hurt a soul.  What if there was no one even in the theater and the offer had been given just to make them feel better?  He tries to suppress these thoughts as best he can.

“Um, do we just open the door?”  He asks Frank hesitantly. 

“If it’s unlocked, yeah.”  Frank pulls the handle and the door cracks open.  He seems to notice that Gerard’s worrying because he says, “listen, if they’re not in there and just told us to come to make us feel stupid, fuck them.  If that’s the case, we just walk out and go home, okay?”  Gerard gives a small nod.  Frank always knows how to make him feel better (one of many on the list of reasons why Gerard loves him).

Frank opens the door and leads the way into the theater.  Gerard could hear the echo of voices right away.  Thank God, they were actually here.  Ryan and Chad are up on the stage, illuminated by its lights that contrast those of the rather dim theater.  This seems to be an issue as the boys don’t notice Frank, who has stopped a few feet back from the stage.  They are quite occupied with what they’re doing; Chad seems to be showing off his hip-hop like dance moves, Ryan watching him intently with actual heart eyes.  Okay, Gerard thinks that’s really kind of cute. 

“Ahem,” Frank says loud enough that both boys whip their heads toward the sound.  “Hi, uh, we decided to come,” he explains as Ryan and Chad jump down from the stage.

“I’m so glad you decided to!  So, what brings you here?”  Ryan says in that happy tone that was already taking the weight of anxiety off of Gerard’s shoulders.

“Um, I thought maybe we could just talk?”  Gerard chimes in.  “You could tell us a bit more about the school and, uh, maybe we can get to know each other?”  Even though he was always extremely uncomfortable around new people, Gerard was doing this for himself. He really needed a few more friends at school as he wasn’t coping well with the absence of Ray and his brother Mikey.  He still saw Mikey at home and both of them at band practice, but school took up such a large portion of Gerard’s life right now that he didn’t see them as much as he wanted to.

“Sweet!”  Chad says.  This was the first time that Gerard had heard him talk.  “I can steal some drinks and pizza from the teacher’s lounge.”  He sees Frank and Gerard giving him inquisitive looks.  “Don’t worry, I have my ways,” Chad says with a smirk.

* * *

Frank hasn’t seen Gerard laugh this hard since before they got kicked out of St. Helena.  He didn’t realize how much he missed it. 

“There was one day where Chad brought nothing but a basketball class.  I thought that he was absolutely insane,” Ryan explains.

“What can I say?  Ball is life,” Chad replies, throwing his hands up.  Gerard lets out another loud giggle.  Frank had completely misinterpreted these guys.  Quiet Chad was actually really funny and cool and Ryan was extremely interesting and less annoyingly happy once you got to know him.  Or maybe he was just getting used to him?  Frank didn’t know. 

They had situated themselves in the theater seats, drinking Mountain Dew and eating greasy pepperoni pizza.  Ryan had started their conversation by giving Frank and Gerard advice about the school.  Ryan had first told them to stay away from his sister, Sharpay (“I love her, but she tends to berate people she thinks are lower than her,” he had said).  Chad had told them to try to get on Ms. Darbus’s (the drama teacher) good side, because he wasn’t and said that it was practically hell being bossed around by her.  All in all, Frank now felt like he could take on the school, and looking at Gerard, he could tell the other boy felt the same.      

After Ryan had told them about how he thinks Chad’s best friend Troy is totally in love with the new girl Gabriella, Gerard suddenly shifts closer to Frank and turns to say something to him.

“We should invite them to our show,” he whispers in Frank’s ear.  Okay, that actually wasn’t a bad idea.  He nods to Gerard.

“So guys,” Frank begins, “we’re kind of in a band, and we have a show on Saturday night.  Would you be interested in coming?”  Ryan and Chad seem to perk up.  They look at each other and engage in some form of silent communication (creepy) before they both nod at the boys.

“Of course!”  Ryan exclaims happily.  “What’s your band’s name?  Just curious.”      

“My Chemical Romance,” Gerard responds.  Chad’s mouth suddenly drops open in surprise and his eyes practically double in size.

“No. way.  You guys are in _My Chemical Romance_?  I listen to Bullets all the time when I’m stressed!  I would skip Darbus’s class every day if it wasn’t for your guys’ music.”  Chad’s smile is so wide that Frank thinks his face is going to legit break.  Looks like they found their first fanboy at East High. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chad and Ryan go to an MCR show.

Chad was practically jumping up and down with excitement as they made their way into the venue.  It was nothing more than a tiny club; it was 18 plus, which Ryan and Chad weren’t as they were both just juniors in high school, but Frank and Gerard had put the boys on a special guest list.  Ryan wondered why these guys were being so nice to him and his friend when they had literally just talked once, but he appreciated it nonetheless.

The club was already pretty crowded.  The lights were dimmed, but Ryan could make out that the dark brick walls were lined with posters and random decorations; a few people were leaning against them as they chatted with their friends. There was an unoccupied dartboard in one corner and a small stage across the room from the club entrance.  The band’s backdrop was already up, a flag that had the band’s name, My Chemical Romance, on it in a rather interesting font.  The center of the room was slowly filling up as more and more people joined the pit.

“Hurry, let’s get to the pit before more people come!”  Chad looks over at Ryan, a reassuring smile on his face when the boy doesn’t move at first.  He had never been in a club before, especially not one with this many people, and Ryan was a little nervous.  “Don’t worry, you’re gonna have so much fun, trust me.  I want to be pretty close to the front, if that’s okay,” Chad tells Ryan.  He already feels a bit better from Chad’s comforting statement so he nods and they head in.  The only shows Ryan had ever been to were Broadway and local theater productions, so he was new to this whole ‘pit’ thing. 

Ryan and Chad manage to get all the way through the sea of individuals and stop with only one row of people in front of them. 

“I can’t believe I’m actually gonna see them perform!  I heard that they were working on new music too,” Chad tells Ryan excitedly.  He then realizes that he doesn’t even know what kind of music they play.  Judging by the guitars and drums set up on stage (and by Frank and Gerard’s everyday appearances), Ryan guessed that they played some form of rock.  Whatever kind it was, he knew that he would probably enjoy it as he was able to appreciate every kind of music in some way or another. 

Ryan can feel adrenaline start to rush through his veins as the lights dim even more and the audience begins to chant “My Chem!  My Chem!”  Chad soon joins in, pumping his fist in the air, and it isn’t long before Ryan joins him as well.  The other boy looks over at him then, a bright white smile plastered on his face.  It seemed like Chad was happy that his friend was enjoying himself just as much as he was in a setting completely new to him.  Ryan really was, too.  Chad turns his head back toward the stage, but Ryan doesn’t look away.  His crush really looks beautiful in this euphoric state.  His cheeks are plump from smiling and his face is illuminated by the soft glow of the remaining club lights. 

Suddenly, these lights go out, bathing the room in pitch blackness and preventing Ryan from admiring Chad’s profile.  The chanting instantly changes into an eruption of screams.  Ryan finds himself yelling with the crowd, the adrenaline surging through him at full force now.  A few seconds later, red light floods the stage, illuminating the band that is now present in front of them.  Gerard’s at the mic, wearing raggedy jeans and a black dress shirt with a red tie.  Frank stands to the left with his guitar, hair messier than normal and eyes covered in red eyeshadow.  There’s a guy slightly behind Frank with a bass (Ryan silently thinks that he looks a bit like Gerard; maybe they’re related?), a tall guy with an afro and a guitar at the right end of the stage, and a blonde guy at the drums. 

“We are My Chemical fucking Romance everyone!”  Gerard shouts into the mic.  It was really strange hearing Gerard actually yell; he was so quiet when Ryan talked to him at school.  With that, Frank and the guy with the afro start off the first song. 

Ryan’s prediction of what kind of music they played was sort of right.  The underlying element was rock, but it had so many other influences that it was like no other kind of music Ryan had ever heard before.  The song is fast-paced and loud and Gerard’s voice is raw but clear at the same time.  Ryan glances over at Chad during the second verse.  He can tell by the boy’s perfect mouthing of the lyrics that definitely knew this song. 

As the show progresses, Ryan finds himself unable to not jump up and down and headbang with the beat of each song.  The music is not the only thing that’s full of energy though; the band members are as well.

The thing Ryan was most impressed with about the show was the band’s stage performance.  He knew all about that from theater, of course.  Someone was always doing something.  Little Frank seemed to have nothing but energy, bouncing, twirling and jumping around the stage.  The other guitar player was constantly headbanging and his fingers sometimes moved so fast on the instrument that Ryan could barely see them.  Gerard was full of quick movements and outstretched arms, his presence matching the music perfectly.  He had so much personality on stage that Ryan had not seen when they hung out. 

Frank was around Gerard a lot throughout the show.  At one point, he even gave Gerard a quick kiss on the cheek and the side of his mouth and Ryan noticed the singer smiling faintly from it.  _Awww_ , Ryan thought.  The boys hadn’t told him that they were dating.  Now that Ryan thought about it, they were always kind of close together and touching each other when the group had been talking in the theater.  Before Ryan knew it, the band was at the end of their set.

“Alright guys, this is our last song,” Gerard begins, “and if you didn’t know, we’ve been working on some new music.  This one is from the album in progress and it’s called I’m Not Okay!”  Ryan hears Chad nearly scream with excitement (he must be happy that they’re making new music) as the lead guitarist starts off the song.  Ryan absolutely loves this one and decides that it’s his favorite after the second chorus.  He’s sad when the guitar fades and he realizes that both the song and the show are officially done.  After a quick thank you and goodbye from the band and a final surge of cheers from the crowd, the lights come back on and people begin shuffling out of the pit.

“That was amazing,” Chad tells Ryan.  They are both panting and drenched in sweat. 

“Yah, it was!” Ryan replies.  “I actually really enjoyed it!” It was true.  He wouldn’t mind doing that again sometime.

Frank and Gerard had told Chad and Ryan to meet them at the side of the stage after the show, so both boys head in that direction.  After waiting a few minutes, Frank and Gerard appear from the back and walk over to them.

“Hey guys, hope you enjoyed the show,” Frank says with a small smile.  He looks tired but happy.

“Yah, you guys were actually amazing!  I’m so happy I got to see you live,” Chad says.  Ryan nods in agreement and the band members thank them.

“You really were!  Your stage performance was top notch, and that’s a genuine compliment coming from someone who does theater.  Also, I didn’t know you guys were dating!  Why didn’t you tell us before?” Ryan asks, curious.

Frank and Gerard’s eyes both widen and they look at each other, confused.

“Um, we’re not dating,” Gerard says with a shy smile.

“Yeah, what made you think that?” Frank giggles in discomfort.

“Oh, sorry!” Ryan gets out, a bit embarrassed.  “Just, uh, pretend I never asked.”  He’s relieved when Chad instantly changes the subject, praising the boys on the way they did certain things in certain songs and how he liked some of them even better live.

The group talked among themselves a bit longer until the club was almost empty and some workers reminded them about closing.  With that, the boys said their goodbyes and Ryan walked out of the club with his still giddy best friend.


	6. Chapter 6

The week after the show, the four boys clicked at school.  Ryan and Chad had invited Frank and Gerard to sit with them at their lunch table on Monday.  Chad introduced the new boys to Troy and Zeke, who seemed a bit skeptical but accepted them all the same.  They also seemed to understand why Chad liked them so much when he explained that “they’re in that band that I listen to a lot.”  Chad’s friends probably wouldn’t understand the other reasons why he had become friends with them all of a sudden. 

Ryan also got to socialize with the band members during chemistry.  They would do group work with each other and even started a group chat for their homework.  Ryan happened to notice that Frank was not the best at chemistry and helped him out every chance he got.  The class also allowed Ryan to discover that Frank was a rather rebellious individual when he and Gerard had to stop the boy from drinking whatever they had mixed in their beaker during an experiment. 

That wasn’t the only thing he discovered, though.  The group experiment on Tuesday required students to heat up their substances in a tube for a set amount of time.  Gerard had offered to do this, and as the boy held the tube over the Bunsen burner, he seemed to get bored and began watching Frank with what Ryan could only describe as heart eyes.  He seemed to be so focused on the smaller boy (who was preoccupied with studying the classroom as he swiveled around in his chair) that the time limit for heating the substance was exceeded and, before Ryan could warn him, the contents of the tube spilled over in a mess of foamy bubbles.  Gerard’s head suddenly snapped back to the task at hand and his mouth opened in surprise.

“Gerard, you had one job!” Frank had said with a smile when his attention was back to the experiment.  Ryan noticed a small blush form on Gerard’s cheeks and he remembered himself giggling quietly.

* * *

“So, how was your Thursday evening?”  Ryan asks Frank and Gerard.  It was a rather nice day outside (spring seemed to be just about here) and the four friends were sitting in a circle in the grass for lunch.  Gerard had asked Chad about Troy as they sat down, but the basketball player had waved his hand and said that his friend was with Gabriella today.

“Good!” Gerard replies.  He was becoming rather comfortable around his new friends.  “It’s always nice to see my brother Mikey when I get home.  And then we had band practice, which is always fun.  We’re almost finished with the new album.”  Chad beams. 

“Really?  I can’t wait till it’s done!  Do you have a name for it yet?” he asks.  Frank sighs.

“Sadly, no.  That’s one thing we haven’t figured out yet,” he states.  It’s true.  They have the concept all laid out and almost every song is complete, but the band hasn’t thought of a title that really ties everything together.

“Well, I’m sure you guys will figure it out soon!  You never know when you might get some inspiration,” Ryan replies, trying to lighten up the mood like he always does.  _He really is a great guy_ , Gerard thinks.             

“RYAN!” a high pitched voice erupts out of nowhere and Gerard jumps.  He looks up to see who he assumes is the one-and-only Sharpay, Ryan’s sister, strutting towards them. 

This is the first time Gerard has seen her, and he can tell more by her fashion sense than anything else that she’s definitely related to Ryan.  Sharpay is wearing a hot pink sequined tank top with silver skinny jeans and sparkly high heels.  Gerard glances a look over at Frank, who has his eyebrows raised in disbelief.  Sharpay reaches the circle and takes her eyes off of her phone to look at her brother.

“Ryan, this person just insulted our audition for the spring musical on Twitter!  They said that we were extremely overdramatic and annoying as shit.  How do I make them pay?” She asks, her hands on her hips and brows furrowed in anger.

Ryan sighs.  “I don’t know Sharpay.  Just don’t do anything to them in person, please.”

“That’s perfect, Ry!” Sharpay gasps.  “I so know that they go to East High, so I’m gonna tweet them to meet me in the courtyard after school.  I will _totally_ drag them there.”  Ryan almost begins to protest but he just rolls his eyes at her idea like he knows he won’t get anywhere with it.

“I didn’t know you auditioned for the spring musical!” Chad says, nudging Ryan as Sharpay violently taps away at her phone.

“Well, yah!  I mean, why wouldn’t I?  I guess I just didn’t tell you cause I thought you assumed that I would participate in every school musical, which I have in fact done thus far,” Ryan replies with a smirk. 

“Ugh, whatever,” Chad says, rolling his eyes.  “We will all definitely come, though, that’s for sure.  Right guys?”  Chad looks at Frank and Gerard questioningly.  

“Of course!” Frank says, and Gerard nods.  He had never seen a musical live before and wondered what it would be like.

Everyone’s heads snap back to Sharpay as she starts laughing, maybe a little manically.

“Three cheers for sweet revenge,” she says slowly, her eyes still locked on her phone and a bit of an evil grin plastered on her smooth face.

As soon as the sentence leaves her mouth, Frank and Gerard both gasp and snap their heads to look at each other at the same exact time.

“That’s a perfect name for the album!” Frank exclaims, his eyes wide.

“It fits so well!  We’re totally using it,” Gerard nearly yells, ecstatic.  It’s times like these, when he and Frank either agree so strongly with one another about an idea or are simply filled with so much mutual joy that Gerard could just grab Frank by the face and kiss him until he’s breathless.  He always tries to repress these thoughts, though, because it is a known fact that Frank is straight.  His train of thought stops when Ryan legit cackles at them.

“See, I knew that inspiration would come quickly enough!” he says in between chuckles.  Gerard looks back at Frank, whose mouth is stretched into such a genuine smile that he can’t help but return it.  Fuck, he really loves that boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sharpay coming up with their album name was one of my better ideas. Hope you're enjoying so far!


	7. Chapter 7

“The album is nearly finished!  All we need is cover art,” Frank explains to Ryan.  He, Frank and Gerard are all at their lab table chatting quietly as they had finished their experiment early (mostly due to the fact that Frank messed up a step so badly that they could no longer do the rest of the experiment, but that was beyond the point).  Gerard was nodding along to what Frank was saying while simultaneously writing in his notebook. 

“Yeah, that’s all that’s left,” Gerard says as he looks up.  “We’re not sure if it should be a drawing or photography or what.”  Gerard’s hand moves away from his notebook as he talks and Ryan notices something on it that catches his eye.  His friend hadn’t been writing, he had been drawing!  And from what Ryan can see, it’s actually really good.  He can make out a boy and a girl close to each other…maybe they’re about to kiss?  And Gerard has used red pen to make their faces appear bloody. 

“What about that?”  Ryan points to Gerard’s drawing.  The boy quickly glances down at the page, looking flustered.

“Oh, this?  It’s just a little doodle, it’s really nothing,” Gerard says, his words all strung together.  Ryan notices a blush begin to form on his cheeks.

“Gee, that’s one of the coolest drawings I’ve seen you do!”  Frank says, a genuine and excited smile on his face.  “We _have_ to use it.”  _They even have nicknames for each other.  That’s so cute_ , Ryan thinks.  Gerard takes one look at Frank and seems to instantly calm down as if the compliment had really meant something to him.

“I mean, I guess,” Gerard says with a small smile.  “It does kind of fit the theme of the album, now that I’m thinking about it.”

“It’s done then!  The album is done!”  Frank almost yells (without anyone noticing him, thank goodness) and suddenly seems to explode with excited energy.  He throws his arms up in celebration, gives Gerard a peck on the cheek like it’s nothing, and then goes back to celebrating for a second before he seems to realize what he did.  Gerard’s face is bright red.  Frank clears his throat and changes the subject to the chemistry homework for tonight.  As he talks, Ryan lets his mind wander a bit and thinks about how happy Chad will be about the completion of the new album.

For the remainder of the class period, Ryan notices something about Frank that he had never noticed before and swears that it hasn’t happened until now.  Multiple times, Ryan catches Frank looking at Gerard in a way that practically displays his attraction to the boy, blinking and flashing lights included.  Each time, he realizes what he’s doing a few seconds in and quickly drops his head down to his own notebook, brows furrowed.

* * *

Frank didn’t know what to do.  He was straight, he’d dated a few girls, but he started having thoughts about Gerard that he never realized he had before.  Ever since Ryan had asked if they were together, Frank questioned why he _did_ kiss Gerard on stage all the time.  Before, he just thought it was because Gerard was his best friend and couldn’t resist giving him affection when he did such amazing things on stage.

At their show a week ago, though, something happened that made Frank question _everything_.  It was during one of their new songs that they had decided to start playing, The Ghost of You.  The song is slower, and at one point Gerard stopped singing and threw his head back.  He stayed like that for a while; his eyes closed, mouth slightly open, and face highlighted by the soft glow of the stage’s white light.  Frank had almost stopped playing.  He remembered his throat going dry and it took all of his being to not run up to him and kiss him straight on the lips.  He stayed where he was, though, finally taking his gaze away as soon as he started having…well, _other_ thoughts besides kissing Gerard.  Frank was kind of glad that Chad and Ryan both hadn’t been able to make it to the show because they probably – no, _definitely_ \- would have noticed something off about him. 

Ever since that show, Frank has been an anxious mess.  He was so full of mixed feelings and contradicting thoughts that he couldn’t sleep or concentrate on any of his work at school.  He had even fucked up a chemistry experiment so badly that they couldn’t finish it.  And how could he forget that Gerard’s drawing being the final piece to the album happened to amplify his love for the boy so much in that moment that he actually couldn’t control himself and had kissed Gerard on the cheek right in the classroom (something he has never done offstage before)?  Frank didn’t know what to do with himself anymore.

One day, while Frank and Gerard are waiting to be picked up from school, Gerard announces that he’s going to fill up his water bottle.  Frank nods at him and can’t help but notice how good Gerard looks when his eyes are squinted from the sun and the natural light enhances their hazel-green color.  

That was it.  His thoughts went into battle mode again.  One side still insisted that he was straight and that he had to deny the thoughts and urges no matter how strong they got.  The other side demanded that he accept his attraction and do something about it.  Both sides scared the hell out of him.  How much longer could he go repressing his feelings every time he saw Gerard?  He knew his friend was gay (since their first year at St. Helena, in fact), but what if Frank did tell Gerard and he still didn’t like him back?  What if he did like him and their friendship was ruined if they ever did break up?  How could he even accept the fact that he liked _boys_ , for God’s sake?

He can’t take it anymore.  He’s about to explode any second.  A boy sits down next to him on the bench.  In Gerard’s spot. 

“That’s my friend’s spot,” Frank says in a monotone to the kid. 

“Well, can’t I just stay here until they get back?  My legs are kind of killing me,” he responds.  He’s got a stupid fucking smile on his face.  Frank wants to punch it.  His eyes narrow.

“ _I said_ that’s my friend’s spot, so get up!”  Frank spits.  Shock spreads over the boy’s face, but he doesn’t budge.  That’s it.  He’s done with this shit. 

Before he realizes what he’s doing, he stands up, grabs the kid by his shirt, and shouts complete nonsense at him.  He’s horrified with himself when he lets a gay slur escape from his mouth somewhere in the mess.

“FRANK!”  He hears a voice – Gerard – practically scream.  His face is twisted in horror when Frank lays his eyes on him, but it almost immediately turns to raw anger.  Frank has never seen Gerard like this before in his life.  His best friend comes barreling towards him in a fit of rage.

Oh, no.  What has he done?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the one angsty chapter I apologize in advance

Chad and Ryan had been making their way to the theater when they spot Gerard and Frank coming down the hall they were about to head down.  Chad could tell that Gerard was furious by the way he was speed-walking with his shoulders hunched.  Frank was following just as quickly but with his head ducked and hands in his pockets.  Oh no, this couldn’t be good.  The two didn’t even seem to notice Ryan and Chad in their peripheral vison as they walked past. 

As soon as Frank and Gerard disappeared behind the wall, Chad quietly ran over and peered past it just in time to see the boys head into the locker room.  What the fuck was going on?  Chad motioned to the worried-looking Ryan with a wave of his hand to follow him towards the locker room. 

Chad was just about to grasp the handle to open the door when he heard Gerard scream something.  He quickly drew his hand back.

“I don’t think we should interfere with this,” Ryan suggested in a whisper.  He was right – they shouldn’t barge in on such a personal fight.  At this point, Chad could hear both boys yelling harshly at each other and it made him flinch.  Whenever he saw the two together they were either laughing about inside jokes or looking at each other with so much love it made Chad’s own heart melt.  And how could he ever forget the time where Frank had _kissed_ Gerard on stage, for God’s sake?  Whether they were dating or not, they were obviously very close and truly loved each other.  Chad really didn’t want something like this happening to them.  He suddenly had an idea at that moment.

“Let’s lock both doors from the outside.”  Ryan opened his mouth to protest but Chad shook his head.  “Listen.  They’ll have to talk it out if they’re both stuck in there.  I really don’t want this argument putting their friendship in jeopardy.”  Ryan sighed and nodded in defeat.  “Okay.  I’ll run over to the gym and lock the door at that end.  You get this one.”

* * *

“I can’t _fucking_ believe you!”  Gerard screams as soon as the locker room door closes behind them.  “I thought you were past this - I thought you learned from St. Helena!”

“He was in your fucking spot!  I was in a pissy mood to begin with and he was the last straw,” Frank spits.  “You of all people should know that I can’t control myself when I’m that angry!”  He could feel the rage build up inside of him again as they argued.

“Well I _do_ know you, and I know that you _could_ control yourself if you just fucking tried!” Gerard hisses.  “And why was it necessary to use a gay slur, huh?”  The boy’s voice cracks when he says this.  Frank can tell that’s what was bothering him the most.  He also has a thought, buried deep underneath all of his irritation and fury, that Gerard looks really hot when he’s mad.  The illogical part of his brain therefore thinks that it would be a great idea to make him even angrier. 

So Frank looks Gerard straight in the eye and starts repeating the slur over and over as loud as he can.  The other boy flinches and his face remains scrunched up as Frank yells.

“I can’t fucking deal with you anymore,” Gerard says in a completely normal tone, which Frank thinks is a bit scary.  “I need to get out of here.”  The boy practically runs to the door to the hallway.  Frank follows him, still yelling.  He doesn’t even know why he’s doing it anymore, but he continues anyway.  Gerard reaches the door and tries to turn the handle, but it doesn’t budge.

“Fuck!” he yells, pointlessly pushing his body against the door in a hopeful attempt to open it.  Gerard seems to remember the other door to the gym, so he starts in that direction, putting his hands on his ears as he pushes past Frank.  He follows, the word still repeatedly escaping his mouth.

When Gerard gets to the door and realizes that that one is locked too, his reaction kind of scares the fuck out of Frank.  The boy’s fist makes contact with the surface of the door once, and he lets out a cry.  Then his legs give and Frank’s best friend is suddenly sitting curled up against the door, his head buried in his arms.  Frank continues.  _Why_?  Why can’t he seem to stop?

Gerard soon snaps his head up and his expression is one of hurt, not anger like Frank had expected. 

“SHUT. THE FUCK. UP.” Gerard screams, tears forming in his eyes.  Frank can hear the pain in his voice.  He finally stops. 

As the smaller boy comes back to himself, he realizes what he’s done.  Frank’s vision goes blurry with tears and he slides down to the ground as well, leaning against the locker behind him. 

“Fuck, what did I just do?” He whispers to himself, voice completely broken.  Gerard doesn’t say anything, of course.  The locker room remains dead silent.

About 40 minutes pass but it seems like hours.  For the first 10 minutes or so, Frank had tried getting Gerard’s attention by quietly saying his name, but he soon gave up when the boy didn’t even bother looking up (or moving, for that matter).  The rest of the time was spent in complete silence and Frank’s mind was racing with thoughts of self-loathing and concern for Gerard. 

All of these thoughts soon fit together like puzzle pieces and he comes to the conclusion that he wants – no, _needs –_ to get better, not only his for friend but for himself.  He sighs, preparing himself and hoping for the best.

“I really do want to get better,” Frank says, loud enough to make sure Gerard would be listening.  “For you and for myself.  I’m so fucking sick of this, Gee.”

Gerard lifts up his head.  _Thank God_.  “Me too,” he says, sniffing.  Frank looks as deep into his friend’s irritated red eyes as he can.

“I don’t know if I can do it alone, though.  Will you help me?” The boy can feel tears start to form in his eyes as he asks the question.  God, he hopes Gerard isn’t still mad at him.

“Of course I will.  You’re my best friend and I love you,” Gerard states like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.  Now it’s Frank’s turn to break down.  All of his emotions from the past hour seem to come pouring out of him, and Gerard quickly scoots over to comfort the smaller boy.  Frank feels Gerard’s arms wrap around his torso and he buries his face into the boy’s chest.  Frank whispers “thank you” and hopes that the tears don’t ruin Gerard’s shirt.

* * *

Gerard was feeling a lot better now.  He could never stay mad at the person he loved after all, especially when he had broken down like that.  The boys were sitting on one of the benches in the locker room, waiting for someone from the basketball team to open the door for practice; it should start soon enough.  Up until now they had talked about some possible options for Frank and then just laughed about how they were trapped inside the school’s locker room.  Gerard couldn’t help but be a little curious about his friend now, though.

“So why were you so worked up today in the first place?” he asks cautiously.  He could tell Frank was hesitating to answer, but then he took a deep breath.

“Okay.  I’m going to tell you the truth, but only because it’s been driving me crazy and I really don’t want to stay like this and risk something happening again.”  Frank was avoiding looking at Gerard.  He wondered why.  “Okay.  I think I like guys.  But I still like girls, and I’m so confused.  My mind has been battling itself for weeks and today was the day that I couldn’t take it anymore.  And, uh…it’s kinda because of you.”  Frank finishes babbling and ducks his head even lower.  Gerard can barely take this all in, and he’s a bit confused.  He had never seen his friend look so flustered, first of all.  And what did he mean it was because of him?  Was he talking about the fight with the boy?  Because he knew that alre-

Before he could finish thinking, Frank’s face is inches from his.  _Oh_.  So _that’s_ what he meant.  Gerard has never seen the boy’s eyes up close like this before.  They’re green and gold at the same time, and it’s kind of fascinating.  Hell, his entire _face_ is still perfect up close.  Frank moves closer, and Gerard can feel his heart pounding in his chest. 

 _Okay, this is happening, what you have been imagining for years is actually happening, oh my god_ , _calm down_ , is all that’s going through his mind as he leans in too. 

All of a sudden, Frank snaps back a bit and quickly mutters, “Uh, you’ve got something in your eye.”  Gerard has barely processed what he has just said when Frank lifts his hand and literally sticks it in his eye.

Even though it barely hurts, Gerard lets out a soft “Ow!”

“It’s okay, I got it,” Frank says, sounding flustered.  There’s a slight blush on his cheeks.  Since when did Frank blush?

Gerard finally has time to process the thought that his crush had been about to kiss him and he fills with disappointment.  He knew it had been too good to be true.  Frank turns away, embarrassed, and Gerard’s heart sinks.  Why had he thought such a hopeful, stupid thought?

They’re saved from awkward tension when the door opens and Chad comes strolling in, basketball in hand.

“Hey guys!  Whatcha doin’ here?”  The basketball player asks when he spots them.  Gerard tries to think of an excuse but Frank thankfully answers first.

“Gerard’s mom said she couldn’t pick us up until 4 so we occupied ourselves by scoping out possible places for music videos.  We walked in here to check it out but when we went to leave both doors were locked, so we were kind of trapped in here.”  Damn.  He was good at this.  Although, the boy guessed, you would most likely become an expert at coming up with excuses if you were a troublemaker.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> who noticed a piece of I'm Not Okay music video inspiration?


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this may be my favorite chapter

The sleepover had been Ryan’s idea.  Chad was pouting about how he wouldn’t be able to see his non-basketball friends as often in the upcoming weeks because of more frequent practices for the final game.  Frank and Gerard had also admitted that they wouldn’t be able to meet after school as they would be busy putting all the final touches on the album by then.  Ryan himself would soon be rehearsing more with Sharpay for the Spring Musicale coming up.

“We should have a sleepover at my house this weekend!” Ryan had suggested at lunch.  He added with a giggle, “Before we’re all so busy that we barely have time to eat and sleep, let alone socialize.”

Everyone had thought it was a great plan.  Chad pulled out a pen and paper (Ryan was proud that he now carried these things with him on a daily basis) and wrote down everyone’s suggestions for what they could possibly do at the sleepover.

“Ryan’s kinda rich and has a home theater so if there’s any specific movies you want to watch, just tell me and I’ll write them down,” the basketball player had said.  Frank and Gerard’s eyes both widened. 

“We should watch as many Star Wars movies as humanely possible in one night,” Frank had said with a smirk, Gerard furiously nodding in agreement.

* * *

They had gotten through the original trilogy and were now watching The Phantom Menace, much to Gerard’s protest.  Chad didn’t think he had been this tired in his entire life.  The pod-racing scene could at _least_ have some dramatic music to keep him awake, but no.   At this point, no one is really paying attention to the movie; Ryan’s playing with the hem of one of the blankets the boys are all sprawled out on (they had started in the seats but soon became bored and had made a pile of blankets and pillows at the front of the theater room instead).  Chad is about to look to his side to see what Frank and Gerard were doing when Frank suddenly belts,

“You know when you’re so tired that you just feel like confessing all of your secrets?  That’s how I feel right now.  Who’s up for a confession party?”  His words are slurred from sleep.  Chad chuckles because literally everything is funny to him right now, and he’s so up for this.

“Hell yes!  I mean, I can barely think right now, but I’m down,” he tells Frank. 

“Let’s do it,” Gerard says, winking at his best friend.  Huh.  That’s a little weird.  Ever since he found Frank and Gerard in the locker room, something seemed off about them.  Sure, they still talked and laughed with each other, but the boys had stopped touching altogether and even seemed to sit father apart from one another.  There had also been times at lunch or after school where the atmosphere between them became awkward for reasons Chad couldn’t quite pick up on.  He felt a little guilty because he knew it must be because of the fight.  He had been the one to lock them in there, after all.  Chad snaps out of his thoughts when Ryan chimes in,

“Sounds great!  Everybody in a circle!”  The four boys rearrange themselves in the blanket pile.  Ryan is next to Chad and Frank and Gerard end up across from them.  Frank takes a deep breath.

“Okay, I’ll go first I guess.  Chad and Ryan, I think you guys are close enough with us now that you deserve to know the reason why we got kicked out of our private school,” he quickly says.  Gerard seems to tense up for a moment, but ultimately nods in agreement with Frank.  Chad has to admit he had been wondering about this, so he listens intently. 

“To start off, I kind of have some anger issues.  They’ve been getting better, but I always seemed to be angry at St. Helena.”  Chad nods, motioning Frank to go on.

“Gerard would get pushed around a lot when he was by himself.  I hadn’t been there the first few times, but for the rest I had been in the vicinity, far enough away that whatever bastard was picking on him couldn’t see me but I could see what was going on myself.  Early on, I would just get angry enough to march over there and tell the guys to fuck off, but soon enough I began to start fights with them.  I started getting in trouble with the school a lot and got multiple detentions and, soon enough, suspensions.  Then there was one day that they clearly had enough.”  Frank swallows hard and looks at the ground.

“We were playing croquet during gym,” Frank starts and he looks at Gerard with a smile.  They both chuckle.  “Don’t ask why.  Our school was strange to say the least.  I was at one end of the field, pretty far away from everyone else.  Then, out of nowhere, one of the biggest bullies in the school – who of course happened to be in our gym class – tackled someone to the ground at the other end of the field.  I looked away at first because shit like this happened every day, but then I did a double take and realized Gerard had been the victim.”  Chad can see Frank’s hands visibly shaking.  Gerard seems to notice as well because he begins to rub Frank’s back comfortingly.

“I got so angry that I ran over there and tackled the guy right back.  I don’t know how I did it, considering he was almost a foot taller than me.  I guess I was just that angry.”  Frank shakes his head.  “I started to beat him up then, and it wasn’t long before the gym teacher saw me.  He called up the principal and Gerard and I both got sent to his office.  Keep in mind that the principal is a real dick.  So he told me that I was expelled, plain and simple.  And myself, still in that mode where I thought I was invincible, said ‘well, if you expel me, you’ll have to expel Gerard too.’”  Chad blows out a breath and shakes his head.  This was not a good situation at all.  Frank notices him and says “See, I thought they wouldn’t actually do it because Gerard was an amazing student - straight A’s.  But the principal didn’t seem to care because that dick just said ‘Fine.  I will.’  And that was the end of that.”  Frank takes another deep breath.

“And I still feel guilty for getting my best friend expelled along with me when he didn’t even do anything to deserve it.”  Gerard sighs and stops rubbing Frank’s back, pulling him into a tight hug.

“It’s okay, Frank.  You know how much I hated that place anyway,” Gerard says.  Chad and Ryan look at each other and ‘awww’ quietly.  The basketball player wondered if either of them had confessed their feelings for each other yet because, really, it was quite obvious.  This moment confirmed it.  Chad suddenly knew what he was going to confess; he hoped it would get one of them to spill _something_.

A few seconds later, Frank suddenly seems to remember that Chad and Ryan are in the room because he quickly pulls away and says,

“Okay, who’s next?” 

“I’ll go!” Chad says before anyone else can speak up.  His heart starts pounding as he realizes that he’s about to tell others about this for the very first time.  “I’m just gonna come out and say it.  I’m bisexual.”  Chad lets out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.  He’s heard other people who have come out talk about this, but it really does feel like a weight has been lifted off his shoulders.  “I thought I was straight up until this year, actually.  I had a really tough time accepting the fact that I like guys along with girls, but Ryan kind of helped me through it without realizing.”  Chad turns to Ryan with a smile.  His friend returns the smile and he swears he can see tears start to form in those green-silver eyes.  Before he can confirm it, though, Ryan is pulling Chad into a tight embrace. 

“I’m glad I could help,” Ryan says sincerely, his voice slightly muffled by Chad’s shoulder.  When they pull away, Gerard chuckles. 

I’m gay as fuck,” he states.

“Same, Gerard,” Ryan says in an instant.  “If you couldn’t tell already.”  Both boys give each other a high five.  That leaves Frank as the only one who hasn’t confessed his sexuality.  Chad is almost positive his plan is about to work.  Sure enough, Frank asks shakily,

“Wait, that’s a thing?  You can be attracted to both guys and girls?”

“You sure can,” Chad replies.

“And it’s called bisexual?”

“Well the term is bisexuality, but yes.”

Frank lets out giant sigh of relief.  “Thank God, I thought I was crazy!  Well everyone, I’m that.  Boom.  Just came out.”  Everyone giggles and the atmosphere lightens, just like that. 

* * *

Why Frank can’t fall asleep, he has no idea (okay, maybe it’s because of the guilt still eating away at him for not kissing Gerard in the locker room; he had seen the disappointment in the boy’s face afterwards).  He was so tired that he doesn’t even remember everyone arranging themselves to go to sleep in the blanket pile.  The four boys were still in their circle in a way; Chad and Ryan are across from Frank and Gerard is to his right.  He can hear Ryan and Chad’s breathing, both heavy from sleep, but Gerard seems to be tossing and turning like him, blankets rustling now and then.  Since Frank’s pretty sure the boy is awake and that lack of sleep seemed to give him an unlimited amount of courage, he decides to get Gerard’s attention.

“Gee?”  Frank whispers.

“Yeah?” The reply confirms that his friend is awake, so Frank begins apologizing.

“I’m sorry I chickened out in the locker room.  I should have kissed you, but I was so nervous and at the last second I couldn’t bring myself to do it and-“

His words are cut off by Gerard’s lips on his.  Okay, this was a lot better than what he had imagined.  Frank eagerly puts one of his hands on the back of Gerard’s head, pulling him closer.  The kiss is gentle and slow and perfect.  Frank doesn’t expect much else considering the fact that they’re both tired as shit, but he’s definitely enjoying it anyway.  It’s really not much different than kissing a girl – no, it may even be better, he decides. 

A few seconds later, Gerard smiles against his lips and rolls back over to his side of the pile.

“You think you can get some sleep now?” the boy asks.

“Definitely.  You?”

“For sure.”


	10. Chapter 10

It was Monday, and, even worse, the last lunch the four friends had together before Chad would be gone for lunchtime practices and Ryan for rehearsals.  The only good thing about today was that Chad was wearing Ryan’s favorite sweater of his, the one that says ‘I come with my own background music’ (he has a thought that the only way it would look any better is if it was on Ryan’s bedroom floor and, nope, that’s really pushing it).  Ryan was trying hard not to feel too sad and wondered why everyone around him seemed overly happy.  It was kind of freaking him out.

Frank and Gerard are both grinning so big it’s almost making Ryan’s own cheeks hurt and, on top of that, they can’t seem to keep their eyes off one another.  Chad is smirking and practically jumping up and down in his seat.  Okay, something was definitely going on.  Ryan gives Chad a questioning look and is about to ask why everyone’s acting like college tuition has been eradicated when his friend seems to read his mind.

“It worked!  My plan worked!”  Chad says quietly, although Frank and Gerard are too wrapped up in each other to notice anything. 

“What plan?”  Ryan still has no idea what the hell was going on.

Chad rolls his eyes.  “It doesn’t matter now.  Just look!”  He points down toward the edge of the table. 

 _Oh_.  He can see now that Gerard and Frank are _holding hands_.  Well, it was about fucking time.  After all those instances – the concert, almost every day in chemistry (there were times when the two had been so obviously smitten with each other that Ryan had been close to blurting something out) and they had finally figured it out.  Okay, now Ryan was ecstatic as well. 

“It’s about time, you guys!”  Ryan motions to their hands, and Frank and Gerard look surprised as if they didn’t know that Chad and Ryan were aware that they liked each other.  Wow, they must be blind or something.   “Now may I finally ask, how long have you two been dating?”

The boys both laugh.  That time at the show really seems to have happened ages ago.

“Since Saturday night at the sleepover,” Gerard says with a smile and then blushes when Ryan and Chad both lean in closer, silently asking for details.  “Um, I kissed him when you guys were asleep.  And I guess we didn’t say anything in the morning because we played Mario Kart until everyone left and when Frank kept passing me on the last lap of _every fucking race_ , I got too mad at him to want to give him any affection.” 

Frank scoffs.  “That’s why you wouldn’t let me kiss you, fucker!  I thought it was cause of them.”  He motions to Ryan and Chad.  “But yeah, I guess I did deserve that.”

When Ryan and Chad give fake-hurt looks, Gerard says,

“Okay, first of all, why would I give a fuck if they saw?  They’re our best friends and are obviously happy that we’re together.  Second of all, we were playing _Mario Kart_.  They wouldn’t have even noticed anything because they were too busy concentrating on not falling off Rainbow Road.”

“That is very true,” Ryan says through a giggle.  He remembers being proud of himself for only falling off twice and Chad congratulating him with a high-five.  Ryan’s getting pretty sick of high-fives, to be honest.  He swears that one of these days he’s going to end up pushing Chad’s hand out of the way and kissing him instead.

The rest of lunch consists of Ryan and Chad awing when Frank and Gerard sneak kisses and Ryan’s stomach burning from laughing so hard at Chad’s jokes.  He’s gonna miss these guys more than he initially thought.

* * *

“Frank, concentrate!  What song should go after Venom?”  He’s really starting to get on Gerard’s nerves. 

It’s the first day Ryan and Chad are gone, so Frank and Gerard have picked a hidden spot outside up against the school’s wall to eat and discuss the album.  It isn’t going well, though, as Frank keeps distracting Gerard with kisses and whenever he asks Frank his opinion on something he looks up from Gerard’s _mouth_ (he had obviously been staring at it while he was talking, the fucker) and say, “What?”  It really was infuriating.

“I think it should be...Your Face Is Fucking Hot,” Frank says dreamily.

“That’s not even a fucking song, Frank,” Gerard says through gritted teeth.  He’s quite flattered, he really is, but-

All of a sudden Frank’s mouth is hot and open on his.  Shit, he’s not going to be able to pull away from this one.  Gerard lets his lips part as well and waves of heat start coursing through his body.  He has a vague thought that this isn’t the time or place for making out but realizes that he really doesn’t care.  He just needs _more_ of Frank.  Gerard puts his hand on the back of Frank’s neck to pull him in closer, and the other boy follows suit.  It gets to the point where their tongues are sliding together and soft noises of pleasure are escaping their mouths, and Gerard realizes that they need to stop before they end up doing something more in a public place.

He pulls away and Frank lets him.  Gerard’s original plan was to look around and see if anyone had noticed them, but he gets distracted by the way Frank looks, hair all disheveled and lips red from making out.  God, he’s really fucking lucky.  He has a _boyfriend_ , and a hot one at that.

“I think I can concentrate now,” Frank says with a smirk after their breathing has slowed down.  “Hang ‘Em High should come after Venom.  It’ll keep the intensity of the second half going strong.”

Gerard silently runs the suggestion through his head, and Frank is absolutely right – it’s perfect.  It takes every bit of Gerard’s well-being to keep himself from kissing Frank again and he manages to simply smile and write the song down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now that Frank and Gerard are doing well let's get Ryan and Chad together


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The making of the Blood music video in the East High locker room.

G: _Hey Chad!  So we decided that we’re gonna do a music video in the locker room.  It’s nothing special, it’s just going to be for a short little song that we made for fun a while ago.  Do you know anybody who might be able to help us film it?_

Chad stares at the text Gerard had sent while he had been practicing.  He silently chuckles at the fact that Frank and Gerard decided to take their excuse this far and actually film a video (Chad knows they aren’t aware of his knowledge of the real reason they were in the locker room that day, but still) but who knows, maybe they had actually come up with an interesting idea that they wanted to execute. 

Chad could use his popularity to his advantage here.  He knows a couple of people in film club.  He’s sure that they would be more than willing to film an actual music video for a semi-popular band.  In fact, Chad knows a lot of people who would be willing to do almost anything to contribute to this.  He could probably make anything that the band asked happen.

C: _Sure thing:)  I do know some people from film club that would totally be down for filming it.  Also, is there anything specific you want in the video?_

G: _Anything?_

Chad rolls his eyes.

C: _Yes anything_

Knowing Gerard probably won’t text back right away, Chad puts his phone down to change out of his sweaty practice clothes (he’s too tired to shower – it’s not like he’s going to be seeing Ryan or anything - he’ll just take one in the morning).

As Chad’s getting everything together to leave for the night, Troy appears at the end of the aisle.

“Hey man.  Uh, great job today.  I think we should be able to win the final game no problem,” Troy says as he shuffles toward Chad.

Chad can tell by Troy’s face that something is wrong.  He _has_ known him since kindergarten, after all. 

“What’s up, man?  Something wrong?”

Troy lets out a long, defeated sigh.

“Just...callbacks.  I still don’t know if I should do them and I couldn’t get my head in the game during practice cause I was thinking about it but at the same time I don’t want to let Gabriella down and-“

“Okay, slow down, Troy.  Remember the time I told you that you were gonna end up in my mom’s refrigerator if you did musical theater?  Forget about that.”

Ryan had completely changed Chad’s perception of theater since then.  He pictures how happy Ryan looks when he does a number and how Gerard always seems to be in a state of pure bliss when he sings and performs.

“And just take Gabriella out of the picture for a second.  The most important question to ask yourself is, does singing make _you_ happy?”

Troy takes a deep breath and furrows his brows in thought. 

“Yeah,” he finally says.  “It really does.”

“Then that’s all that matters, man.”

* * *

Gerard calls Chad right as he’s throwing his bag mindlessly into the middle of his messy room.  Chad hears something crunch underneath it.  Whatever, he’ll check it out later.

“Hey Chad!” Gerard and Frank both say to his surprise.  They must be together and have him on speakerphone.

“Hey, what’s up?  Figure something out for the music video?”

“Yeah.  I think we’re gonna keep it simple, but since we’re in a locker room I thought about doing a, like, school spirit theme.  Do you think you could get us some cheerleaders?”

“Of course! The entire squad loves the basketball team.  I know most of them, too.  How many girls do you think you want?”

“How about five cause there’s five people in the band?”  Frank says, almost too fast for Chad to understand him. 

“Okay, I can do that.  Anything else?”

There’s a long pause on the other line.

“Gerard!  Pleeaaase?” Chad hears Frank say quietly.

“No, we’re not doing that!  I don’t even think they’re allowed!” Gerard mumbles.

Chad hears movement and Frank whispers something he can’t make out.  Gerard sighs in defeat.  “Ugh, fine!”  Chad hears him say quietly.

“Um, Frank wants a dog, too.”

* * *

“Okay Gerard, you should walk down first since you’re going to be sitting down in the front,” the film club president, Shane, instructed.  “And the rest of you guys can go in any order you want.  I think at least one person should enter from my right side though, just to spice things up little and avoid crowding at the beginning of the song.  We’ll have that once the cheerleaders come in.”  The crew from film club consisted of Shane, who was directing, and a couple of people working the cameras and lighting.  It wasn’t much, but Frank thought it was still cool.

Frank was super excited to film this.  Maybe it was because they hadn’t filmed an actual music video for one of their songs yet.  Or maybe it was because being in the presence of a dog made him overly happy.  It could very likely be both.  Either way Frank was really, really excited. 

The five boys decided that Frank would enter last on the left side because he had Dorf and Bob would be the lone person entering on the right.  They ended up having to do a few takes because Frank kept on getting distracted by Dorf.  He couldn’t help petting his head every time he took a glance at the adorable pitbull (Frank would thank Chad a million more times for letting him use his dog -- maybe he should get him his own personal copy of Revenge once it was out.  Yes, he will definitely do that).

After they finally got a good take, they continued with the ‘pre-cheerleader portion’, as Shane liked to call it.  Bob had the idea of stealing a sharpie and tape measure from one of the classrooms for he and Mikey to interact with in order to make the video more interesting, so they fooled around with that stuff for a few takes.  Gerard was really going at it with the song, singing and moving around on his spot on the bench.  Ray just sat on the bench most of the time petting Dorf, which Frank could understand.  Frank didn’t do much himself, just switched back and forth between leaning up against the lockers to standing on top of the bench behind everyone all while keeping hold of Dorf’s leash. 

Soon enough, it was time for the cheerleaders to enter the shot.  They really had to squeeze down the aisle and, okay, it was as crowded as Shane said it would be.  But this was going to look so cool for the video.  Frank was really enjoying being in this stupid video filmed for a one minute and twenty four second song – he tried not to question himself too much.

“Okay, everyone.  We have all the takes we need, so I think it’s time to start the exits,” Shane announces after some time.  “After Gerard sings the final line, cheerleaders should make their way out first.  Then the band can leave right after them.  You don’t have to be in a line this time if you don’t want.”

After the boys make their exit and disappear from the camera’s view, Shane shouts “that’s a wrap!” and everyone cheers.  Frank immediately turns to Gerard.

“That was so cool!  We just filmed an actual music video!” he says enthusiastically while petting Dorf.

“That we did,” Gerard responds, giving Frank a quick peck on the mouth.  Frank’s eyes meet Mikey’s when Gerard steps back, and his face is twisted in disgust.  Frank giggles.

Once everyone has exited the locker room, Frank pulls out his phone to text Chad.

F:  _T_ _he music video went so well I can’t wait for you to see it!!!  And thank you so much again for letting me use your dog.  And for getting the film people and cheerleaders I guess.  But mostly for the dog:)_


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frank and Gerard try to get Chad and Ryan together.

Chad really should just tell them.  The guilt is eating at him a bit and besides, why would Frank and Gerard be mad at him for basically getting them together?  He should do it.  Just press the skype button right now.  Chad has to go to practice soon too, so any time spent hovering over the button and deciding otherwise would be thrown out the window.  Chad jumps when the familiar ringing sound echoes a bit too loudly in his headphones.  He honestly doesn’t remember pressing the button, but it’s now or never.

It takes a good minute before Gerard appears on screen. 

“Hey!  What’s up?” Gerard says loudly over the conversation happening behind him.  It looks like the entire band is sat at the Way’s kitchen table.  Chad picks up on sentences about dates and releases so he assumes that they’re discussing the album.

“Oh, um, if you’re busy I can call back another time if you want,” Chad says, trying to hide both his nervousness and excitement (seriously, he’s so stoked for this album). 

“No, no, it’s fine!  I need a break from these dickheads anyway.”  Gerard rolls his eyes.

“Ok, cool!  I was wondering if I could talk to you and Frank about something,” Chad manages to get out.  Gerard immediately turns his head towards the kitchen table.

“Frank!  Come up to my room with me, Chad wants to Skype.”

* * *

After taking a huge breath, Chad says, “I was the one who locked the locker room doors on the day you were fighting.”  Before Frank can say anything, he continues, “Yes I knew you guys were fighting and yes Ryan may have helped me.  But it was my idea, so blame it on me if you’re mad.  If you want an explanation, I just really like you guys and didn’t want anything detrimental happening to your relationship.”

Frank takes in Chad’s confession.  Is he crazy?  Does he realize that, because this was his idea, he’s the one who got them together?  Frank wouldn’t be mad at the guy in a thousand years.  He is a bit embarrassed that Chad and Ryan knew they were fighting, but he guesses that doesn’t really matter anymore.  Frank looks over at Gerard and he can tell that his boyfriend is thinking the same exact thing. 

“Dude.  It’s fine, trust me.  I mean, you locking the doors didn’t only resolve our fight, it got us together!  We’re not mad at all.  If anything, we want to thank you for doing it.”  Gerard nods in agreement.  On the screen, Chad smiles wide and Frank swears he sees a blush rise on his cheeks.

“Aww, it was nothing you guys.  I’m just glad you’re not mad at me.”

Frank suddenly has an idea.  Chad and Ryan got them together.  Chad and Ryan have serious crushes each other – it’s been obvious since that first day in the theater.  Now it’s Frank and Gerard’s turn to get _them_ together.  The plan is perfect.  Frank doesn’t even have a plan to get them together yet, but still, it’s perfect.  He should just get the ball rolling right now.

“So in other news, how is your crush on Ryan going?”  Frank gets out before Chad can react.  Gerard looks at him wide-mouthed like he did not just say that.  Chad blushes again and immediately becomes flustered.

“Ryan?  I-I don’t have a crush on him!  I mean, uh, obviously I like him ’cause he’s my best friend but like, no.  No crush.”  He makes an exaggerated movement to look at the time on his computer.  Frank is already rolling his eyes.  “Oh, shit!  I’m gonna be late for basketball!  Update me on the album when you can, okay guys?  See you soon bye!”

After Chad hangs up half a second later, Frank closes the laptop and looks at Gerard. 

“You see this shit?  He’s so in love it’s ridiculous.  We have to return the favor and get Chad and Ryan together.”  Gerard nods and narrows his eyes like he’s already trying to think of a plan.

“What about we invite them to another show?”  Gerard asks.  Frank is seeing problems with this already.  When would both Ryan and Chad have time to go to a show?  Surely not until after callbacks and the final game.  And how would a show even be a good setup to get them to realize their feelings for each other?  Frank tells all of this to Gerard, but his boyfriend still looks confident about the idea.

“Hear me out, okay?”

* * *

Gerard is halfway through Drowning Lessons and Chad still hasn’t shown up.  He knew that Chad had practice and would probably show up late, but there’s two songs left in the show after this one.  Gerard has been glancing at Ryan from time to time, who looks like he really is trying to enjoy himself.  He doesn’t have half the energy he had during the show he was at with Chad, however.

Gerard is really starting to get worried as the next song starts and tries to not let it show.  It seems that Frank can detect this and in one swift movement he is next to Gerard and kissing him straight on the lips.  This calms Gerard’s nerves quite a bit, of course. 

Frank lets go a bit dramatically and the crowd screams in delight.  Gerard doesn’t really question it – fans love stage gay.  Gerard glances at Ryan, who is smirking like he’s the only one who knows that they’re actually dating.  Which is probably true, but.  That’s beside the point.  Wasn’t Gerard supposed to be doing something? 

Yes, he was.  Gerard is reminded of the plan when he spots Chad rushing towards the pit.  He struggles to get in anywhere besides the very back; the crowd is too riled up for him to maneuver through.  Even if Chad did get through, he would still have to try and find Ryan among the mess, which is just about as likely as him actually pushing through in the first place.  Basically, the plan is ruined.  They really didn’t think this through, did they?  Gerard’s heart drops a little bit.  They never came up with a backup plan.

They still have to go through with it.   

The spotlight will turn on any time now.  Gerard has to start his speech.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m feelin’ some love in the air tonight,” he starts.  He’s also pretty sure that Frank’s beaming at him out of the corner of his eye.  Gerard honestly feels so lucky.  His giddiness goes away again when he realizes that Chad and Ryan can’t have that feeling yet, not even now because the whole plan got fucked up.  Just great.  He decides to continue.

“I think we need to see some love from you guys.”  Gerard gets cut off by the entire pit screaming in agreement.  “Don’t do anything yet, though!  We have some demonstrators.” 

That’s the cue for the spotlight, of course.  It immediately turns on and Ryan and the guy next to him become illuminated by bright, white light.  Gerard has to say, Chad’s replacement is pretty cute.  Shit.  There is only one thing that he can do to clean up a bit of this mess.  He’s definitely not going to have them kiss. 

“Alright, lucky demonstrators, I want you two to MOTHERFUCKING HOLD HANDS!”

Both boys hesitate for a moment but realize that they should probably just go with it and demonstrate this practically harmless command that was ordered rather harshly. 

“Okay everybody, do what the demonstrators are doing!  Spread that love and hold each other’s motherfucking hands!”

Replacement Chad’s confidence seems to grow under the spotlight and he raises their intertwined hands.  Gerard’s eyes kind of bug out his head when Replacement Chad kisses Ryan’s hand Ryan’s face turns red under the white light.  Well, shit.

Gerard reluctantly decides to glance over in Chad’s direction.  All Gerard is able to notice about Chad is his brows furrowing (in jealously, Gerard thinks) before he stiffly turns around and practically runs out of the building. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm pretty sure ' I want you two to MOTHERFUCKING HOLD HANDS' is the best sentence I've ever written


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize in advance again but also Chad needs to tone it down with the jealousy

If anyone ever touches Ryan – hell, if anyone even looks him in the eye – Chad honestly wouldn’t hesitate to cut a bitch.  It doesn’t help that he’s never able to see Ryan because of basketball and theater and the depressing fact that Chad is never able to see him at school (besides Darbus’ class, but if he even attempted to socialize in there Darbus would probably rip his afro out). 

Chad knows now that is crush on Ryan is hardcore because there is no doubt that jealousy his tearing his insides apart.  Ryan didn’t even know that guy at the concert.  But even the back of the guy’s head was cute and Chad didn’t exactly see Ryan slap the guy after he kissed his hand.  He actually kind of smiled from what he could see.  Chad swears…if this anonymous dickhead ends up stealing Ryan from him he will never forgive himself.  So much so that he will probably create a new identity and move to Switzerland.  Chad should tell Gerard and Frank that they need to tour there.  They’ll be hella famous by then anyway. 

Wow, Chad is really paranoid.  And he doesn’t even have the right to be jealous – Ryan’s not even his boyfriend.  But he kinds of need to see Ryan right now in order to prove to himself that he isn’t making out with cute-anonymous-hand-kissing-boy this very instant.  Chad decides to Skype even though he has to leave for basketball in like 5 minutes. 

* * *

Ms. Darbus notifies Ryan of his 10 minute break and he sighs – well, more like pants – in relief.  The show is next week and they’ve gone through almost every single number today.  He and Sharpay had just finished Bop to the Top in which he has to climb up a freaking ladder after doing an entire strenuous routine.  He needs to go sit down. 

Ryan heads over to the edge of the stage where is coat is.  His phone, which is sitting on top, is lit up.  As Ryan gets closer, he sees that Chad is skyping him. 

He gets excited for a second before realizing that Chad should be leaving for basketball about now.  Ryan hopes it isn’t anything too serious. 

“Hey!” Chad says as soon as Ryan answers.  “I’m actually really glad you answered.  Are you with anyone?  Where are you?” 

Chad seems relieved, happy, and worried all at the same time.  Ryan hopes he’s okay.  He’s probably just stressed – the big game is next week, after all. 

“No, I am not with anyone.  Unless you include Ms. Darbus, Kelsey, and my sister.”

“Oh, so you’re at rehearsal!  Makes sense.”  Chad seems to relax a bit.  Ryan is really confused.  Who would Chad possibly not want him to be with right now?  Ryan makes his way over to one of the audience seats.  Much more private and comfy.

“So listen,” Chad continues.  “I’m sorry I couldn’t make it to the show.  Practice ran really late.  Coach Bolton was _not_ in a good mood.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” Ryan replies sincerely.  He completely understands.  He probably would have enjoyed himself a bit more if Chad had been there with him, but seeing Frank and Gerard perform with their band is always cool.

“Okay cool,” Chad says with a huge smile.  Ryan really loves that smile.  It kind of makes him melt every goddamn time. 

Chad suddenly furrows his brows in thought.  “So Gerard told me that you and another guy demonstrated holding hands.” 

Ryan expects him to giggle because that would be something Chad would totally laugh about.  His face is completely serious though and it’s kind of creeping Ryan out.

“Um, yeah?  What about it?” Ryan says cautiously.

“Do you know him?  Do you ever plan to see him again?” 

Ryan backs up a bit because he doesn’t understand why Chad is asking him about this.  First of all, he did not know the guy and does not plan on seeing him again.  Sure, he was cute, but he’s so far gone for Chad at this point that he is incapable of thinking that he could be with anyone else.  Second, Ryan knows that this conversation is serious, but he can’t help thinking that Chad’s frustrated face is kind of adorable.  There’s little crinkles between his eyebrows and he looks about as menacing as a pouting child. 

Ryan decides to answer Chad’s question since he very much seems to want to know the answer.  

“Nah, he wasn’t really anybody.  And of course I don’t plan on seeing him again.  All I did was hold his hand for a demonstration.”  Chad’s face lights up and he’s looking at Ryan in a way that really makes him want to tell Chad that he wasn’t interested in the guy because of Chad himself.  He really, really wants to.  It would be a pretty cute way to confess his feelings, too.

Fuck it, Ryan thinks.  He’s going to do it.  He’s finally going to do it.  The more Ryan thinks about it, the more he realizes that he really can’t wait any longer. 

“Chad? Listen, I –“

He’s cut off by a faint, high-pitched bark that echoes through his phone speakers.  Chad hears it too and his head snaps to the side.  Ryan can tell that he spots something out the window.

“DORF!” Chad yells, shooting up off his bed and leaving Ryan with a view of the plain beige wall that he had been sitting against.

* * *

Ryan runs out of the theater – practically pulling his sister with him – as soon as Ms. Darbus lets him go.  She obviously doesn’t care about dogs, the heartless woman. 

“Ugh, Ryan!  I was supposed to go to the spa after this!” Sharpay complains as soon as they get in the car.  Unfortunately for her, Ryan’s car is getting fixed up at the moment so they’ve had to take Sharpay’s back and forth to school for the past week. 

“Well that’s too damn bad.  Chad’s dog probably just got hit by a car, okay?  This is a million times more important than getting your toes massaged.”

So that’s how Ryan finds himself speeding to the emergency vet in a hot pink mustang.  He remembers very vaguely where the place is but he’s able to put pieces together whenever they’re stopped at a red light.  It seems as though there’s a red light at every intersection, which of course would be bound to happen when you’re in a rush to check on your crush and his injured – hopefully not dead – dog.

Ryan finally pulls up to the vet and practically runs inside, Sharpay sulking behind him.  As he gets into the waiting room, he of course spots Chad’s hair and runs over to him.

“Hey,” Ryan says quickly.  “Do you know what happened to him?  Is he going to be okay?”

Chad looks surprised and Ryan knows he’s about to ask why he and Sharpay are here when they should be at rehearsal.

“Fuck rehearsal!  What happened?” Ryan insists. 

“Well I ran outside to see the driver that ran Dorf over standing over him in shock like he didn’t know what to do.  I got over there and told the guy that I would take care of it.  The first thing I took in was that one of Dorf’s hind legs was beaten up pretty bad, all bloody and stuff.  He wasn’t bothering to try and stand up, obviously.  Of course I’m the only one home so I just pick him up, get him in my car, and drive here as fast as I can.  I’m pretty sure he’s going to be fine, though.  That back leg seemed to be the only part of him that got hit.”

Okay, that’s good news.  “Thank god,” Ryan says in relief.  In the few second of silence that follows, Ryan hears a choked sob over to his left.  He turns to see no other than Frank in one of the waiting room chairs, eyes red and tears streaming down his face.  Gerard is in the chair next to him, rubbing Frank’s arms in comfort.  Ryan walks over to him.

“You know he’s gonna be fine, right?  He’ll probably just have to get one of those doggy casts.  We could all sign it too!”

Frank giggles at that.  “Yeah, I know.  As soon as Chad told me exactly what happened I calmed down a little bit but Dorf in pain still makes me sad.”  Frank perks up a bit as if he’s remembering something.  “Oh man, but when Chad called us and said he was at the emergency vet I flipped a shit because, number one, I thought a car might’ve ran over his skull or something, and number two, he called while Gerard and I were kind of making out on my bed and we were about to-“

“FRANK!” Gerard hits the side of Frank’s arm with the back of his hand.  “Ryan does _not_ need to know about that!”  Gerard is blushing now and Frank just has a small smile on his face.  Ryan simply smirks at them while shaking his head.  He decides to head back over to Chad and realizes that he left him with Sharpay, who are now very awkwardly conversing.  Whoops.

“I don’t really like big dogs.  I like tiny dogs that I can carry around with me as an extra fashion accessory, like Boi.”

Chad chuckles and says “dat boi” under his breath.  The meme-loving fuck.  Ryan wants to marry him.

“Hey,” Ryan says to Chad casually.  Chad smiles as soon as their eyes meet and Sharpay scoffs and goes to sit in one of the waiting room chairs. 

“I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever, man,” Chad responds. 

“I know.  We really haven’t, in person at least.”  Ryan really wants to hug him.  “Come here.” 

Their hugs are usually short and tight because that’s how Chad is used to hugging people, but this one lingers a bit longer than normal.  There’s time for Ryan to take in the scent of Chad’s hair and wrap his arms tighter around Chad’s back.  Ryan doesn’t want to let go – he would be perfectly fine staying like this forever.

But Chad eventually lets go and their eyes meet when their faces are close enough that Ryan can feel Chad’s breath ghost over his face.  Chad is just staring at him like he can’t look away.  Holy shit.  Ryan needs to say something right now.  If he doesn’t, he is actually going to die. 

“Hey Chad?” Ryan practically whispers.

“Mhmm?”

“You know I-“

A door suddenly opens and Chad and Ryan turn their heads when they hear the metallic sound of a collar.  Ryan realizes that it’s the veterinarian with Dorf (with a cute little white cast just as Ryan expected), but not before he sees that Frank and Gerard are completely oblivious to his entrance because they’re full-on making out.  In an emergency vet waiting room.  Goddammit. 

“DORF!”  Chad yells.  He is not the first to reach his dog, however, because Frank seems to have heard the name and has shot up and taken one long stride in order to reach the pitbull. 

Ryan and Gerard take their time to walk over to Dorf as he is being furiously petted by Frank and Chad.  Once Ryan can reach a hand over to pet Dorf’s head, he can tell that the dog is as happy as ever, panting heavily and wagging his tail so fast that it’s just a blur of brown.

Once Chad has received information from the veterinarian and Frank finally decides that Dorf has received enough attention, they head out to the parking lot.  Dorf has a little limp because of his cast and Ryan decides that it’s kind of the cutest thing ever.

Gerard, Frank and Chad all give Ryan a look as he hops in the passenger side of Sharpay’s pink Mustang.

“Shut up,” he says simply, and his three friends giggle as they make their way to their own cars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nothing else will happen to Dorf I promise. I'm sorry if I gave anyone a heart attack but I would never kill a dog in a story what kind of person do you think I am.
> 
> side note: That's it so far! Final chapter in progress!


End file.
